JACKSON, Wyo. — At the Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Board’s Pass closure update meeting on Wednesday, June 12, representatives from START Bus and the Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) shed light on the local transportation situation while the Teton Pass remains closed, providing updates on the detour project and plans for mitigating US89 traffic.
START’s Transit Operations Director Bruce Abel and WYDOT Communications Specialist Stephanie Harsha confirmed that the two agencies are collaborating to assess the timing of the traffic signals along US89 at High School Road and South Park Loop Road, hoping to gauge opportunities to alleviate the new congestion on the highway during commuting hours.
Abel said START drivers and dispatchers are collecting real-time data about travel times and congestion and plan to adjust commuter bus departure times as necessary.
Harsha also shared that WYDOT’s team is monitoring the traffic congestion through the Snake River Canyon and “looking at addressing” the situation. She said transportation partners in Idaho are going to post additional signage along the Palisades route to warn drivers of the potential delays.
Harsha and Abel both stressed that the public could assist in reducing congestion by staggering their commute times if possible, and by carpooling or using public transit to reduce the number of single-occupancy vehicles on the roads during peak commuting hours.
Also noteworthy were Harsha’s updates regarding the planned Teton Pass detour. She said the project is progressing very quickly and, barring any weather-related delays, should be on track to be completed within the projected two-week timeframe. WYDOT is working with the U.S. Forest Service to remove trees from site of the detour, and crews from Evans Construction are building up the fill for the new road segment, she said.
Drivers should expect the detour to be a steeper and sharper turn at milepost 12.8 when the project is complete. Harsha anticipates that reduced speeds will be enforced around that bend.
Harsha said WYDOT’s goal is to have the more permanent Pass repair completed before severe winter weather sets in. Geologists are in the process of drilling into the slide site to assess the situation, and the data they gather will inform plans for the permanent repair. Harsha expects that the geologic survey will provide critical information for those plans by the end of this week.
